This Week's Story
click here to play audioKobe's work ethic transformed his basketball moves into split-second strategies and magical moments of flight.
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What matters to Kobe on the court? part two
Fans poured into Staples Center for a basketball game. They sizzled with anticipation. It was the Lakers’ first season to play in the new arena. Games were scheduled from fall 1999 into spring 2000. Medium-ranged tickets cost sixty to one-hundred and thirty dollars. Floor tickets were in the $1,150.00 range.
Kobe Bryant would be playing. He was young, twenty-one years old, a phenomenal shooter, whether dunking into the basket, or over the backboard, midrange swishes, or three-point-baskets that hissed as they flashed into the net. Shaquille O’Neal, a superb all-star center, was back. Phil Jackson recently had been hired by the Los Angeles Lakers as head coach. All were becoming legends in basketball history and American entertainment.
Fans could be heard discussing and arguing pros and cons of the coaches and players.
“What do you think matters most to Kobe when he is playing?”
“That’s easy to answer. Winning!”
“Don’t over-simplify.”
“I agree! Kobe is brilliant, private, with an intense work ethic that prioritizes shooting practice, conditioning, and skill work. He usually practices at least six hours daily. He focuses so intently that within a nanosecond he can see what kind of shot he is going to make, how to get into position, or to whom he needs to pass the ball. All of those moves are intended to put him and the team into a winning position.
“Sometimes there are complications, sometimes helps, if he’s prepared to be a team player. He has to study his teammates and opponents, and anticipate how to respond to them. Sometimes he is criticized for not being more of a team player.
“Slow down. Go back to nanosecond. That’s a billionth of a second, certainly faster than I can comprehend.”
“Well, just watch Kobe’s footwork. He can make a basket and position himself for another before the ball hits the ground. It’s incomprehensible to know how many decisions he is making, but I understand that many of his moves have become automatic. They are part of a foundation that he has built so he can combine decisions and moves into a strategy that is incredibly fast.
“Actually, in every sport, in every subject we study, we need to build foundations that prepare us to make automatic movements and choices. It requires time and discipline. Kobe is a master of focus and discipline. That’s probably why he’s been such a private person in his first years with the Lakers.
What do you think about Coach Jackson? I understand Kobe wanted him to coach the Lakers.
That is a question that opens doors! Coach Jackson has a clearly defined philosophy of coaching. That does not mean that the unexpected does not catch him by surprise, but he has clear values that guide him. He is committed to teamwork that includes the coach and team players. The coach is not to lead based on ego. He is to create conditions for players to excel. Certainly, the team excelled. They won five championships.
Join us soon for part three. Today, Gwen Crawford, Carlos Gamez, Todd Warren, and I, Barbara Steiner are with you.
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